Problem

Is this study observational if it compares exercise habits people already chose with their health outcomes?

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What this problem is really about

Ask whether researchers imposed the explanatory condition or merely recorded conditions people already had or had chosen themselves. Without researcher assignment, comparing existing groups is observational even when the groups' outcomes differ. Such a design can reveal association, but unbalanced background variables may confound the comparison and prevent a causal conclusion.

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This is a sample survey because the researchers are collecting information about people's exercise habits and health.

This is not observational because the people's own choice of exercise habits counts as assigning the treatment.

This is an experiment because the study compares exercise habits and health outcomes to see whether exercise causes better health.

This is an observational study because the researchers only compare exercise habits people already chose with their health outcomes.

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Is this study observational if it compares exercise habits people already chose with their health outcomes?

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